Suit Jacket Fit Help
Hey all. My Suitsupply Lazio suit arrived, and I'm wanting some advice on how the jacket appears to be fitting. This is the size 34.
I always knew that I'd need to get some alterations, but would appreciate some help in working out what specifically, or indeed if this actually works.
It actually looks better than I expected in the front, although sleeves definitely need shortening.
Bit concerned by how it looks from the side and from the back however - but I don't know if those issues would be alleviated by the sleeve adjustments anyway?
Any other feedback welcome - I can post better pics if needed, although might take me a while.
(oh and ignore the OCBD, I have no dress shirts whatsoever at the moment š )
39 Replies
(Will also add that I am planning to pop into a store for said alterations, but just wanted advice here first so I knew what to look for - or indeed if it was even worth looking for them)
Have you tried one size smaller?
Hmm, was hoping I was a 34 but perhaps thereās something going on with the shoulders hereā¦
I think that due to the padding/structure in the Lazio, you could get away with a 34, but not in something like the Havana, which doesn't have the padding. There's a lot of fullness at the armholes in the back, which isn't really something that SuSu designs for -- their suits tend to be made to be ultra-tidy. If you're looking for the SuSu "look," I'd go with a 33 or 32, because it'll clean up a lot of that fullness all over. If you're aiming for something a little more British/drapey, you could conceivably get a tailor to shape the jacket, but they'd really have to know what you're going for. Also, I'm not a tailor, so I can't say how much jacket you can take off before proportions start to get wild.
Get it pressed
The sleeves are obviously too long but it's really tough to judge potential fit issues (especially in the back) with those creases
Tbh I was looking at the Havana as an option, and yeah gathered Iād defo need to size down with the more unstructured nature of that.
Tbh Iām wary of doing anything which is going to impact the potential for a return - and I have limited time so perhaps my best option is to try a size down and then head into a store when Iām able to
The front looks fantastic but obviously some issues in the back. Unsure if a size down is going to actually fix those things w/o causing other ones
Yeah that's fair.
Although tbh, the more I look at it in comparison with fits I've seen elsewhere, the more I feel that the length may be a bit long?
Which is slightly worrying because I thought the Lazio was a shorter fit...worried now that their entire range is just going to be too long on me.
I think I need to head in store, just need to somehow find the time š
maybe long. Hard to say w/o a full body shot
Will try and get a better shot tomorrow - thanks
Iām on team size down
I was leaning towards that until I wore it again last night and it looked significanctly better (imo)
(excuse the crappy pic/t-shirt+jeans+socks combo)
will try and get a better full body shot later
also tempted to try the Havana model in a 32
Okay, something seemed off about the fit of the Lazio 34 so I don't think it's for me - I think the shoulders were a bit roomy too, which is obviously a no-no.
I'm trying the Havana fit in a 32, so we'll see how that goes. Hoping the slightly slimmer chest/shoulders, combined with the slightly shorter length will look a bit better all round OTR.
My one concern with that is that the one I'm trying is in a VBC 'Traveller Wool' which appears to be unlined in the jacket. Is this going to massively impact durability?
I'd still try the 32 or maybe you can get your hands on a 34s if you think the fit in the shoulders is good
And no, it won't impact durability a lot.
Good to know re: durability.
I've got the Havana in 32 arriving this week, so I'm hoping that it works a bit better with my frame overall. Annoyingly they only seem to stock S sizes from 36 and above - at least on the UK store.
We'll see how it looks - will likely post another pic
Havana 32 arrived - much better fit in terms of overall sizing, I think - bar the expected sleeve length/something minor in the shoulder (which may just be me nitpicking an OTR fit tbh)
Not too sure how comfortable I am with it being unlined however - as I do like the feeling of the lined jacket a bit more.
I saw that they had a Lazio in a 32 in a Dark Grey S110 wool, so Iām going to try that and then I suspect Iāll choose between the two models.
Either way, I plan to head in store next week with one of them for any needed alterations
(In future Iād definitely head in store first, but from my chats with them online I know the smaller sizes have limited stock in stores, and Iāve left it quite late for anything custom - I am impressed with how easy their order/delivery has been though)
We need pics!
Right, the 32 Lazio arrived and straight OTR Iām far happier with it than the other ones Iāve tried so far. Seems to look neater in the shoulders than the 32 Havana did, and length seems far better compared to the 34 lazio.
Will try and post better pics later, so ignore the t-shirt, unbelted jeans (I took a photo in a rush the moment it arrived), but just wanted to share a front shot
Sleeves will need to be shortened a tad, ofc
Yes, I think the 32 will work better. Length looks better for you too imo.
Looks decent. Waist looks like needs to be let out a little bit, see the pulling?
Would prefer to see you in a proper shirt and trousers
I'm rubbish at photos and a lack of decent spots with natural light doesn't help, but added a few photos here - i think in the first one of the rear, i hadn't pulled my shirt collar up over the jacket collar, hence it not being visible. Trousers need to be shortened so this isn't a concern right now, even though they don't look brilliant in the photos. I can try and take some better full body shots tomorrow if needed - but first thoughts....
Jacket seems to fit me much better than the 34, although the sleeves need shortening. Back is a little untidy, but I'm honestly not sure if some of this is down to posture/stance, and posing a bit unnaturally for the photos - because it doesn't look as bad when I just turn around in front of the mirror.
Length of the jacket looks like it may be a little long from the rear, although I'm not overly fussed about that.
I think my main concern right now is that there's some visible wrinkling at the shoulder when I'm standing in profile? Would this signify a major issue? Would this be lessened by the sleeves shortening?
I plan to head to SS on Wednesday, as I'm off work - I just hope that from these pics at least it looks like it'd work for me. A profile shot from the other side
And actually, whilst I'm here...I need to get some shoes - with a dark grey suit am I limited to black or would a very dark brown work also?
Tie - I'm guessing I can go for pretty much anything colour-wise?
defo think my stance is playing a factor here - or at least it seems to exaggerate the things i'm noticing. I'm just worried I'll walk into SS and they'll say "Nah, this doesn't work" 
Hmmmmmm. I definitely see some stuff but I'm not a tailor so it's hard to me to diagnose. The back isn't quite clean and there's bits that concern me.
Front looks pretty good except that the button seems to be doing too much work. Obviously not gonna mention sleeves since we know about that
Your right sleeve, at the back side, isn't really clean but the left one seems fine? I'd want to figure that out. Could be several things, including just a bad stance for the photo
On the back, okay it's hard for me to diagnose because I don't know shit. In poor light some of it is just hard to identify properly but I think I am seeing a little too much tightness across the upper back above the shoulder blades, and extra fabric a bit lower than that, hanging a little loose? Do you agree?
It also looks like there's extra fabric where lower armholes meet the back. See that? Especially in picture 5.
I suspect it's also pulling a bit due to being tight
All of that means to me: go to your tailor and ask them what they see and how to fix it
And as frustrating as it is, you're usually better off being told the cut won't work than spending $$$ to try to alter it to hell to try to make it work
To answer the other question:
For a charcoal suit I prefer black oxfords as the most classic, straightforward option. You can do black derbies. Now I'm not against a dark brown or burgundy oxford per se, I think a color 8 shell would look just fine too, but there are two questions in one: aesthetics and formality intent. Aesthetically I like it. But the intent of a charcoal suit is quite formal and the shoe that best matches that formality is a black oxford in calf leather, maybe a black derby (especially when it's the same last/shape as a conservative oxford -- plus barely anyone notices the difference between the two.) Browns, burgundies, and shell cordovan leather for example are all intended to be less formal, and they don't complement a charcoal suit as well as they complement a navy suit (IMO) so... I'm meh on it. Classic advice says black oxford. Nobody's gonna kick you out of your boss's office or interview or favorite restaurant or country club for doing something else...
For a tie, there's the most obvious options: conservative ties in any color; repp/regimental ties that fit your use case; and some slightly bolder ties. Those are mostly easy.
Ties are one of those items where people may choose them as the "only one bold/loud element" rule: classic shoes, shirt, suit, loud tie. Often works better with pale blue than white shirts. So in that respect the world is kind of wide open to you. Classic pale blue shirt, charcoal suit ... multi-paisley tie? It'll work. Wool? Sure. Brassy geometric? Probably. Might cause people to take note but probably not in a bad way unless you are trying to do a "uniform" look that attracts no attention.
Thanks @gimp this is super helpful. Iām going to take another look tomorrow because tbh when I look in the mirror/am not posing, it looks better so Iām genuinely not sure if thereās something going on with my stance etc
I even recorded a few videos earlier and whilst I noticed the shoulder wrinkle - they were less prominent and the back looked far far cleaner - itās odd haha
Not a big fan of black derbies tbh. They are kind of awkward. For the alterations if you go to Suitsupply you should be fine. Their tailors are good and from my experience their staff knows what to alter. The trousers might need some love as well, they look good from the front but a bit large from the back.
Now for the shoulders: I actually think they should take in a bit from the back and that might even be enough to solve the shoulder "problem" but I am no tailor either.
Heading to Suit Supply now so weāll see what they say. FWIW, Iāve been walking around with the jacket on at home and itās definitely less prominent if I just stand more naturally, and stop trying to āposeā
So, was impressed by the service and chatting with them in-store. Did panic a bit at first because her initial impression was that the jacket was simply too long, and she told me that whilst they could shorten it, she doesn't like doing this because of the inherent risks that this throws up with the jacket overall - which matches what i'd read online previously.
After a bit of a further look/discussion, she/we decided that the length was fine - and any shortening wouldn't be worth it (aside from the obvious risks/reluctance to do that anyway).
Sleeves being shortened (expected)/tapered slightly, as she noticed that there was a bit of excess fabric which could be tidied up (i have skinny arms) - and then it's being taken in slightly, which she felt would neaten up some of the areas i had concerns over, albeit perhaps not fully resolve
It did look pretty good imo pinned up - certainly neater - so we'll see how it turns out when everything is done. Her recommendation for me in future was to play around with their custom program, because alterations add up and presumably because i'm probably a bit difficult to size. She said that it may not be the most perfect fit, but did seem confident that we can get it looking better - and as we played around with it more she seemed to think it worked pretty well for me
the customer experience was good - prior to deciding whether to go for the alterations she even went next door with me to another retailer to see if their sizing worked better for my build OTR - alas their lengths were even longer - being shortened, but we thought that overall nothing further needed to be done on them
- being shortened, but we thought that overall nothing further needed to be done on themSounds great. Now we'll just have to wait for the final pictures!
yes - nervous to see how it turns out, but it's out of my hands now, and tbh even if it's bad I'm going to have to wear it haha
was panicking at the start of my convo with them because the insinuation was that it just may not work for me and it may not be worth spending more money on alterations, but as we started talking more/playing around with it/she changed her mind on the length (and she spoke to the tailor there who confirmed that the sleeve shortening wouldn't be as expensive as she thought - which i think was a factor in her initial unease) she seemed to think there was a good fit to come from it - albeit perhaps not perfect, but hey, i left it late so that's a lesson for future
Iām finding myself looking closely at every suit I happen to catch on tv etc now š they all fit so differently on people!
On a more serious note, I need shoes and I think Iām leaning black. Would something like this work fine?
https://outlet.loake.com/shop/wadham-black/
I donāt want to spend too much on shoes because I suspect their usage is just going to be limited to wearing said suit.
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If they fit then yeah. Black captoe oxfords, straightforward and basic. If you plan to wear them often I'd spend more on better quality, but if you need them twice a year it's not really necessary, assuming they don't fall apart in a few years (some shoes do even when worn sparingly, life be like that.) Loake is generally known to be adequate and unlikely to just fall apart spontaneously (?)
Yeah I donāt suspect theyāll be worn often - would just be nice to have a pair to dress up with when needed. When I left SuSu I actually walked by a Loake store but they had just closed for the day. Think Iāll order.
Next stop a tie, but as indicated above, I might be able to have a bit of āfunā with that. Will have a look for inspo online, and may try a few when I head back to the store for pick up
Actually, I love the look of this: https://suitsupply.com/en-gb/men/accessories/ties/knitted_ties/light-brown-knitted-tie/D212015.html
Light Brown Knitted Tie in Pure Cashmere | SUITSUPPLY United K...
Shop the Light Brown Knitted Tie in Pure Cashmere at Suitsupply. Enjoy FREE delivery and returns on all orders.
A knit tie won't work well with the suit you chose imo. It's too casual. Also I don't really like the quality of the SuSu accessories but if you like it go for it.
Not that I like knit ties (personal preference) but you can certainly do a casual tie with a serious suit, under the theory of "one loud item." Gotta figure out what works and what doesn't but a casual tie can be fine. Just takes work to figure out the right combo
The fabric looks very business-y to me for a knit tie in that style
I mean yeah it wouldn't be my choice, ... but.
I think it just grabbed my attention when I was scrolling through - will likely just try a few and see how they look
Tbh now that the suit is out of my hands, Iām beginning to get nervous that itās going to end up too slim with the taking in - it looked fine pinned so I think Iām just overthinking now š
Sorry for the lack of update - I've since picked up the suit after alteration, and subsequently worn it to the event I intended to.
(I was pretty nervous about getting feedback on it, because by this point, well, it was too late to do anything about it )
I don't think the fit was spot on perfect (still some wrinkling), but then the person I spoke to at SuSu was fairly honest that this would be the case. It was certainly better though!
I WAS happy with it on the night, it felt good to wear, I got compliments on it, and I thought I looked pretty good in it, tbh.
The only thing I may change now is to take it back out in the sides ever so slightly. But that's something to consider in future - I just felt I should pop back in here and thank folks for the help/advice.
)
I don't think the fit was spot on perfect (still some wrinkling), but then the person I spoke to at SuSu was fairly honest that this would be the case. It was certainly better though!
I WAS happy with it on the night, it felt good to wear, I got compliments on it, and I thought I looked pretty good in it, tbh.
The only thing I may change now is to take it back out in the sides ever so slightly. But that's something to consider in future - I just felt I should pop back in here and thank folks for the help/advice.Nice!